Flyers Alumni History

Flyers chairman Ed Snider brought hockey back to Philadelphia in 1967 and a love affair between city and team was born. One of six expansion teams, the Flyers not only won their division in their first season, but eventually became the first expansion team to win the Stanley Cup in 1974.

The Flyers Alumni Association (a 501(c)(3) organization) was originally named the Philadelphia Legends. The Association was created in 1984 and continues to grow with membership consisting of national and global former Philadelphia Flyers players. The Alumni can be found playing games around the world and participating in other charitable projects throughout the year.

Through the years, the Flyers Alumni Association has maintained a tradition of giving back to the Delaware Valley community. Charities and community organizations that have been supported in the past include St. John's Hospice, Ronald McDonald House, March of Dimes South Jersey and Junior Achievement of Delaware.

50th Anniversary Alumni Game

Presented by AAA, on January 14, 2017, the Flyers Alumni will celebrate 50 seasons of Philadelphia Flyers hockey with a 50th Anniversary Alumni Game against the Pittsburgh Penguins Alumni. Game time will be at 7 p.m. EST.

Proceeds from the game will benefit the charitable and community-based works of the Flyers Alumni Association and Flyers Charities.

2016 Flyers Alumni Fantasy Camp

The second annual Philadelphia Flyers Alumni Fantasy Camp was held on August 19-22, 2016 in Atlantic City, NJ. This unique event provided adult hockey players with the opportunity to interact with Flyers legends both on and off the ice. Proceeds from Fantasy Camp benefited the Flyers Alumni and Flyers Charities.

This year, the participating Flyers Alumni instructors and tournament included Hockey Hall of Famers Bernie Parent and Mark Howe, along with the likes of Danny Briere and Flyers assistant coach Ian Laperriere. Other participating Alumni included Brad Marsh, Todd "Fridge" Fedoruk, Bob "the Hound" Kelly and Flyers Hall of Famers Brian Propp and Joe Watson.

Dave Schultz

It's hard to believe that Dave Schultz started out on the Prairies of Saskatchewan as a quiet, shy young man. His voyage to the big leagues, however, transformed his style of self-expression to the point that, in the NHL, his persona was a defining element of the game of his day.

After two seasons of junior with the Swift Current Broncos, Schultz headed east where he made a strong, two-fisted impression with the Salem Rebels of the EHL and then the Quebec Aces of the AHL. In an era when players generally settled most scores themselves, with the help of as many as three enforcers per team, NHL GMs usually retained a stable of fighters on the farm. By 1972, the Flyers realized their need to bolster their club's police department. They brought Schultz and Don Saleski on board to complete a lineup that became known as the "Broad Street Bullies."

At the NHL level, Schultz quickly showed the league why he was known as "The Hammer". He fought mammoth battles against fellow enforcers like Keith Magnuson and Terry O'Reilly. He also ensured that the smaller minnows of the league played an honest game when skating near the Flyers' more elite players. The formula of fight first and play hockey later proved very successful as Philly won successive Stanley Cups in 1974 and '75.

For Schultz, the victories represented the highest point of his career. He lasted only one additional season with the Flyers before venturing outside of the team's Broad Street cocoon. In 1976, he joined the Los Angeles Kings where enforcement continued to be his defining role. But by then, there were plenty of new, young fighters in the league who sought to prove their mettle under the weight of "The Hammer." The problem for Schultz was that he was getting older and losing some of his taste for fisticuffs. He lasted just over one season with the Kings before rounding out his NHL career in Pittsburgh and then Buffalo. He retired from hockey in 1980.